Superman has fought off three alien invaders from his adopted home city of Metropolis in as many issues. With each subsequent attack, it became more and more clear that they were not random attacks. The invaders spoke a language that no one on Earth could understand; yet Superman picked out a single word from each… Krypton.

This issue begins in the aftermath of the third alien attack. Heather Kelley, the reporter that was host to the third alien, is missing. Jimmy Olsen and Miko Ogawa, who were with Heather just before the attack, are being interrogated by the Metropolis Police. They claim that Heather said something about feeling extremely cold just before the alien appeared and that’s all that they remember. The police are also “interviewing” Superman to corroborate the story. Superman’s account matches Jimmy and Miko’s and, with no charges to press, Superman is released.

The rest of the issue is spent trying to piece together the clues surrounding the attacks. Last issue left it clear that, despite being defeated, the alien entities are still residing in the bodies of their hosts. As the heroes and reporters race to discover their purpose, the aliens all strike again… this time at Clark Kent’s apartment!

With ‘Superman’ #3, writer George Perez hit a stride with his first story. The story and clues that Perez is dropping about the origin and purpose of the alien creatures makes for riveting reading. It’s clear from the font and the dropping of the word “Krypton” that they’re related to Superman’s homeworld, but what they are and what is their purpose remains to be seen. Also, one of the police conversations hint at something that happened between Superman and the MPD some years ago which is an obvious tie-in with ‘Action Comics’.

The story layouts from Perez’ himself lend a very 80′s vibe to the whole affair. On top of that, the pencils of Jesus Merino make this a book where the art fits nearly perfectly with the story that is being told. The only book of the New 52 that has a better chemistry between art and story is ‘The Flash’, but keep an eye peeled later for my review of ‘The Flash’ #4 which also came out this week.

Verdict: Buy

SUPERMAN #4 Written by GEORGE PEREZ Art by JESUS MERINO Breakdowns and cover by GEORGE PEREZ